HUNDREDS of families are to have around £180 shaved off their annual fuel bills.

An £8.5m project will see 329 council homes on Anglesey fitted with solar panels.

The green scheme will cut electricity bills by around £180 for each of the properties in Morawelon estate, Holyhead.

The panels will be fitted to 183 houses, 62 bungalows and 84 flats, between this September and March 2012.

It will cost the island council £1.25m, paid for out of the Housing Revenue Account. It will help residents living in one of the most deprived estates in Wales save money and generate renewable electricity.

The installations will bring in £7.29m over a 25-year-period for the council via a government tariff programme which will cover any costs for maintenance and replacements.

This scheme is also set to deliver 469,107 kwh of renewable energy every year which will go back into the national grid.

It will make a huge impact in reducing the carbon footprint in the area saving an estimated 169,900 tonnes of CO2 over the next 25-years.

The large scale activity will provide further benefits to residents including job creation in installing and maintaining the panels, business growth and training for local people.

Detailed survey work will be undertaken to establish any obstructions preventing the work going ahead on certain properties. In a report by Dafydd Rowlands, technical service manager at Anglesey council, he said: “Where properties are deemed unsuitable for PV installations, the project will signpost households to other sources of energy efficiency advice and support.”

Councillor Arwel Roberts said: “This is just a trial at the moment and if it’s a success we are hopeful it will spread across the whole island.”